Exploring Why We Enjoy the Anti-Hero Essay -- The Rise of the Anti-Her

There is no doubt that the popularity of the anti-hero as we know it has increased in recent times. With unlikely, yet popular moral gray protagonists like Jack Bauer, Dexter, and Gregory House leading some of the most popular TV shows and characters like James Bond, Lisbeth Salander, Tyler Durden (from Fight Club), and Jack Sparrow being some of the most memorable in movies, it is not surprising that there has been an increased interest to understand what causes this characters to be so popular (Peter Jonason in et al., 193). What is it that makes them as likeable, if not more, than a normal hero? How come we relate to characters that perform actions that, if done in real life, would cause us to see them in a whole different light? My argument is that an increased understanding in the human psyche has enabled us to see through our preconceived moral standards to accept and, in many cases, admire these anti-heros. Under the right circumstances, almost any action is permissible (albeit not necessarily right or wrong). The readers, however, must undergo a process of exposure to the anti-hero and the world she inhabits before they permit her actions. This process of â€Å"disengagement† (presented by Daniel Shafer and Arthur Raney) is what enables the reader to change his preconceived moral standards, at least in the anti-hero’s universe, to actually enjoy the story. Before explaining the big picture, however, I think it is important to understand how the enjoyment of stories can be weighted. The enjoyment of most narratives is measured through the affective disposition theory (ADT). Shafer and Raney explain that: â€Å"ADT is generally considered the most comprehensive theory explaining the process through which enjoyment is derived ... ...mpathy, understand her flaws and what lead her to be the way she is, and feel those appeals to our primitive feelings related to the Dark Triad of personality traits when she kicks some butt, we can finally enjoy the positive emotions which would be condemned as wrong in the real world. Works Cited Funk, C. and Gazzaniga, M. â€Å"The functional brain architecture of human morality†. Current Opinion in Neurobiology 19 (2009): 678-681. Web. Hemley, R. â€Å"Sympathy for the Devil, What to Do About Difficult Characters†. Creating Fiction (1999): Edited by Julie Checkoway. Story Press. Jonason, P. â€Å"The Antihero in Popular Culture: Life History Theory and the Dark Triad Personality Traits†. Review of general psychology 16.2 (2012): 192-199. Web. Shafer, D. and Raney, A. â€Å"Exploring How We Enjoy Antihero Narratives†. Journal of Communications 62 (2012): 1028-1046. Web.